This is a recipe for jolly rancher type hard candies. In my opinion, you must use BHO for this recipe. Alcohol or glycerin based tinctures tested with this recipe would not allow the candy to set up properly. Bubble hash will give it a grainy sand paper like texture. BHO melts and incorporates into the candy perfectly.

This recipe makes three full trays. (a little bit less than 200 pieces, ~20mg of BHO per piece) In my experience, one piece is enough for pain management and a light buzz, and two pieces will give me a warm and comfortable stone. It's worth noting that I am one of those people that can smoke or vape all day, but I am particularly sensitive to ingesting cannabis, so your results may vary. When ingesting, let the candy fully dissolve in your mouth. Do not chew on it or swallow it. Allowing it to dissolve will let you absorb most of the THC sublingually, which means it will hit you faster. Most people feel some effects in 15 minutes, with the full effects coming on in 60 to 90 minutes. I would recommend everybody start with only one piece and wait at least an hour before ingesting more. It can sneak up on you! I also recommend sticking with the amount of BHO recommended in the recipe. Using more can make the candy unpalatable. Also, the more you use, the harder it is to incorporate into the mix. If you want a stronger result, just eat more candy.

Mix table sugar (not the powdered sugar), syrup and water together and bring to a boil over medium heat on the stove. Gently stir the mixture while on the stove until the sugar is fully dissolved. Once dissolved, DO NOT STIR anymore. Stirring once the temperature crosses a certain point will cause the syrup to become grainy, and your candies will be gummy and grainy instead of hard like jolly ranchers. If this happens, don't freak out. The candy is still edible, it's just not ideal.

When the mixture reaches 260 degrees, add the desired amount of food coloring. DO NOT STIR. The boiling action will incorporate the color.

Remove from the stove top when mixture reaches 300 degrees, or "Hard Crack" stage.

Wait until boiling action calms down a little, add the flavoring and BHO, and stir gently with whisk until evenly distributed. Be careful, adding the BHO and flavor will result in bubbling and a quick release of steam. Do not drop the BHO into the syrup, or it may splash back up at you. What I do is stick the chunk of BHO onto the whisk, and then incorporate it into the syrup that way.

Quickly pour syrup into molds. Pour any leftover syrup onto parchment paper. (Trust me, you don't want to leave it in the pan)

Allow syrup to set up for an hour or so (can be sped up by putting trays into freezer) and then break up the pieces. Put all of the pieces into a gallon sized ziploc bag with 1/4 cup of powdered sugar and shake until coated evenly. This will prevent them from sticking together.

And that's it! Now you've got 100-200 doses of high quality medicine. These candies will keep for several months in a sealed bag in the refrigerator without losing potency.

Some Tips:

BE CAREFUL!!!! I can't stress this enough. We're working with a sticky 300 degree liquid that can give you a third degree burn on contact. Do not do this when you're baked if you're prone to accidents. Always be mindful of how hot the candy syrup is.

Put your pans and utensils immediately under hot water after you've poured the molds to remove the syrup before it sets. Don't wait to clean this stuff up, otherwise it will become nearly impossible to remove.

Do not use anything but plain white table sugar. Raw, brown, turbinado or other types of sugar do not make good candy syrup and they increase the likelihood of the syrup becoming grainy.

Watch out for boil overs! They can happen at any time if the mixture is boiled too vigorously. Only boil over medium heat. Your pots and pans can be cleaned with hot water, but it's VERY hard to clean candy syrup off of your stove top. If a boil over starts to happen, turn the heat down a little bit and use the spatula to knock down the foam until it subsides.

Lightly grease the molds with butter or Pam. You don't want them too greasy though. Wipe them down before pouring.

The cannabis flavor of most BHO is fairly strong, so you will need to use more flavor oil to cover it up than you might think. This recipe typically calls for only one teaspoon of flavor oil if you're making the non-BHO version. However I have found that at least two is necessary. Sometimes three. It depends on the flavor. My personal favorite is three teaspoons of Licorice. It gives it a strong herbal flavor which I find appropriate for a medicinal preparation. Anything too candy-like would make me want to eat more than I should and get into trouble.

This candy can be used to sweeten tea & coffee as well. It's best to make an "unflavored" batch for this purpose, and to crush the pieces of candy before adding them to your beverage.

And of course: ALWAY ALWAYS ALWAYS be responsible with this candy and keep it out of the reach of children.

I don't know, I haven't really tried anything else. BHO seemed to work the best in hard candy out of what I have tried (everclear tincture, glycerin & bubble hash). What I really like about BHO though is that it always seems to be roughly the same potency when I make it, regardless of how much I make. And I don't really have to measure anything when I make it either. It just extracts as much as it can and that's it. The other methods can vary in potency depending on a lot of factors, chief among them being human error.

So the recipe I posted above results in approximately 20mg of BHO per piece of candy. Which means I get stupid on 40mg. I've read reports from other people who make BHO edibles that shoot for 100mg dose levels. I also read reports from the same people who say that they give their edibles to friends who then promptly "OD" on them. So I think 20mg is a good portion amount. Whether you take one or five, you have control over your own destiny. Something I think is lacking in the way a lot of people make edibles.

From the same amount of material that provides a single, moderate-strength dose, you'd have multiple, stronger, longer-lasting doses, if you used your BHO to make a bioavailable edible oil, first
Eating glandular material on its own can 'work' to some degree, but increasing its bioavailability allows for much less waste, and much greater medicinal potential.

Quote:

Originally Posted by flatcurve

it always seems to be roughly the same potency when I make it, regardless of how much I make.

If I've understood you right, this also may help to explain why you noticed some inconsistency in strength, when you make more or less at a time... that implies one batch, is much more efficient than the next (from the sounds of it your larger batches are more efficient).
But even that aside, you'd have more reliable and consistent results, between both larger and smaller batches, with a proper medical oil.

Cannabis glandular material is notoriously difficult for the body to absorb, all on its own, even if it has been activated, and even when it is in the form of a sticky concentrate. Without a 'vehicle' such as oil, alcohol, or glycerin, you pass much more potency than you absorb.

We choose the 'edible solvents' we do, not only because they are effective at breaking down cannabis glandular material into particles small enough to be absorbed, but because the solvents themselves facilitate absorption, they coat the potent particles and behave as a delivery mechanism, effecting cellular permeability, increasing bioavailability.. the edible solvent you choose and then allow to remain with your glandular material, during consumption, allows much less of your valuable, potent material, to simply go "in one end, and out the other", without absorption.

You can get away with using up to 2 Tbsp of oil per cup of sugar, without altering the consistency or 'shatter-ability' of your candy. Many hard caramels, and peanut brittle, have even more oil content than that!

From the same amount of material that provides a single, moderate-strength dose, you'd have multiple, stronger, longer-lasting doses, if you used your BHO to make a bioavailable edible oil, first
Eating glandular material on its own can 'work' to some degree, but increasing its bioavailability allows for much less waste, and much greater medicinal potential.

Certainly something to think about, however I consider 0.02-0.04 grams of BHO per dose to be a success in the potency department. It's at the point of diminishing returns for me, as cooking edibles is not my focus. Jumping through additional hoops to wring out every last drop of potency is not worth my time, and this recipe is for those with similar considerations. Truth be told, if I were making these for med clubs or the like, my process would be different. But I'm not. 90% of the BHO I make is smoked.

Quote:

If I've understood you right, this also may help to explain why you noticed some inconsistency in strength, when you make more or less at a time... that implies one batch, is much more efficient than the next (from the sounds of it your larger batches are more efficient).
But even that aside, you'd have more reliable and consistent results, between both larger and smaller batches, with a proper medical oil.

Actually you misunderstood me. What I meant to say is that for me, a gram of BHO is a gram of BHO, whether I make one gram at a time or an ounce. That has been my experience. I do not have inconsistencies in potency from batch to batch. The butane extracts as much as it's going to extract and that's it. Whether I get a couple grams from a half ounce of nugs, or five grams from a few ounces of trim, the extract is almost always similarly potent. Do I have any way of proving that? Not really... but in my experience, I can count on similar results every time I make this recipe.

Quote:

Cannabis glandular material is notoriously difficult for the body to absorb, all on its own, even if it has been activated, and even when it is in the form of a sticky concentrate. Without a 'vehicle' such as oil, alcohol, or glycerin, you pass much more potency than you absorb.

We choose the 'edible solvents' we do, not only because they are effective at breaking down cannabis glandular material into particles small enough to be absorbed, but because the solvents themselves facilitate absorption, they coat the potent particles and behave as a delivery mechanism, effecting cellular permeability, increasing bioavailability.. the edible solvent you choose and then allow to remain with your glandular material, during consumption, allows much less of your valuable, potent material, to simply go "in one end, and out the other", without absorption.

You can get away with using up to 2 Tbsp of oil per cup of sugar, without altering the consistency or 'shatter-ability' of your candy. Many hard caramels, and peanut brittle, have even more oil content than that!

Thoroughly purged BHO is pretty damn bioavailable, in my opinion. At least, if you allow the candy to dissolve in your mouth instead of swallowing it that is. Could it be better/stronger/faster? Possibly. Is it the best active ingredient out of those that I've tried? Definitely. Considering the amount of work (or lack of) required to make this, it's a no brainer for me.

That's not to say I'm ruling out your suggestions. If I ever find myself with enough time on my hands, I may give them a try.

I kinda wondering about how safe ingesting bho really is ? I heard that even if bho is purged with a Vac chamber that there might be harmful elements left over from butane still in the oil. I dont know if this is true or not i would love to hear what everyones thoughts are on this and if any one know of any research/test results proving or disproving this ? I know there is a better way to make it ,talisuim extraction system device( spelled wrong i know ) where you dont vent butane into the air and all the butane is recovered , this might be the way its done to make sure its not harmful to ingest ? 1500.00 bucks or so for equipment though.

Take the Keif/BubbleHash/DryIce Hash and put it in the oven at 235F for 1 hour.

Using your hard candy recipe, add the powdered hash into the cooking pot when everything is still cold. First the Surgar, then corn syrup, water, then sprinkle the hash as finely as possible. Add heat and stir it up real nice.

Cook it to soft crack instead of hard crack. Do everything else the same.

These will be super potent, fast acting (15 minutes or less), and cleaner. Saves tons of time and it has less crap in it. And yes, the hash melts up just fine.

As far as strength, I mix 2 grams of kief per cup of sugar used to make candy.

__________________
**********************
Learning to make my own medicine
Thank goodness for compassionate California and Prop 215

Cannabis glandular material is notoriously difficult for the body to absorb all on its own, even when it's activated, even when it is in the form of a sticky concentrate.

We use the edible solvents we do, not only because they are effective at breaking down cannabis glandular material into a size that can pass through cellular walls, but because they dramatically enhance cellular permability once a solution has been created, the solvent being the oil, the solute being the cannabis glandular material.

This is how it works...

Without something to effect and enhance cellular permeability, on their own, cannabinoids for the most part just bounce off our cellular walls (going 'in one end, and out the other' through our tract, without absorption), rather than being absorbed on contact, and passing through them. When you drop your material directly into a food item, whether it's candy, brownie batter or mashed potatoes, whether it's herb, or the same glandular material contained on that herb in the form of hash or an extract, you're missing out on a HUGE amount of potency.

Sure, these methods 'work', but they rely heavily on whatever lipids, or even alcohol, that may already be present in your system from a previous drink or meal, and these methods only work best for those with very low tolerances, and still only by over-consuming the amount really required.

The above 'water' could be brownie mix, it could be hot cocoa, it could be gravy for your mashed potatoes.

It represents whatever you just added your canna oil to, and it displays how your glandular material responds when properly made into a solution; it responds by maintaining a thin 'coat' of the solvent.

Our bodies simply are not capable of either breaking down, or absorbing much cannabis glandular material, in the amount of time it takes to digest and then pass that material.

When we use an edible solvent, it not only breaks down and dilutes glandular material into particles small enough to be absorbed, before they are even consumed, but it also provides that coating or 'vehicle' for cannabinoid delivery.

------------

The oil you choose, specifically dictates where in your body the material will be absorbed, you need to process your glandular material and the required oil of your choice, with gentle heat, for long enough, to create a bioavailable solution.

Activation also plays a huge roll in how your meds will effect you. The more activated, the more narcotic the sensation (this is what most recreational users are after), and the more pain-relief you will receive. Less-active material, in a bioavailable solution, can effectively provide anti-spasmodic help, some pain relief, anti-mutagenic/anti-cancer benefits, while leaving the patient much more functional (this allows people to increase their dose, and their exposure to cannabinoids and terpenes, exponentially, if they otherwise feel uncomfortable with too much 'active' THC).

Back to the oil source...

Most patients and recreational users require short and medium-chain triglycerides (in coconut oil, and butter, with coconut oil being far superior, having a much higher medium-chain content, three to four times higher than butter) to experience the most from their medicine. This is because those fatty acids are absorbed via the portal vein and liver, which allows for the liver conversion to take place, converting much of your D9-THC, to the more powerful 11-OH-THC.

The long-chain triglycerides contained in most kitchen oils, only promote lymphatic absorption, which bypasses the liver.
In patients whose livers over-metabolize cannabinoids, regardless how little or much they've eaten and how recently they last ate, they need to rely on that lymphatic absorption in order to become medicated. By avoiding medium and short chain triglycerides they can absorb their meds; it provides a weaker, and shorter-lived experience, but, at least they can benefit from their meds, in the form of the remaining terpenes and activated D9-THC.

You can try it both ways, with both kinds of oil... but try it by processing exactly-the-same-way-both-times. You won't know why one oil worked, and the other didn't, if you get 'creative' while comparing the two and change things between trials.

If you feel your liver is doing more harm, than it is doing good for your meds, then olive oil is the long-chain containing oil that I would recommend. Otherwise, unless you have an allergy to coconut, then coconut oil is the way to go.

As I've done for the last decade or so within the cannabis community, both online, and on various continents around the globe, I am only trying to help you to get the most from your material, by sharing the same techniques and the same reasoning the experts use professionally, in the medical community.

But in the end it's your material, so feel free to continue using it however you like. We all have different expectations and requirements from our meds, I like 'making the most of things', for my patients, so they receive the most medicinal benefit, and 'the most bang for their buck'. Improved bioavailability and enhanced cellular permeability, and proper activation, provide much greater healing capacity (and the same increased benefits can also be had by recreational users).

Here is what I recommend to the masses. Try both ways. Find out for yourself.

I definitely agree... in kitchens (and labs!) all across the world, and particularly in the dispensaries and clinics, a lot of trial and error has taken place and we've all come to the same conclusion. I urge all patients to do the same.

It's why Granny Storm Crow has included much of the above in her medical list, as well as my online 'recipe book'.

If you haven't seen her work, you're missing out, she's put so much of her energy and time in compiling hundreds of studies, and thousands of pages of documentation!

We all have not come to the same conclusion, I will leave it at that for now.

There's nothing wrong with doing what you feel is best, with your meds

Most of us aren't as fortunate to have good, or any, results by simply adding unprocessed extracts and hash into edibles, and it is fairly common knowledge that a lipid vehicle or 'edible solvent' enhances cellular permeability greatly, and drastically improves both the strength and duration of the experience and allows for much more active chemical content to enter the system and blood stream, which is precisely why we use the oils, alcohol and glycerin solvents, we do. But everyone is certainly entitled to process their material as much, or as little as they like.

"Absorption of THC by the gastrointestinal tract is quite effective, but relatively slow and erratic. The food content of the stomach may affect the rate of absorption. Even though cannabis resin is poorly soluble in water, effective emulsions or suspensions of cannabinoids in water can be achieved for oral consumption.. Furthermore, if THC is given by oral ingestion, the vehicle in which it is administered (for example, alcohol, sesame oil or glycocholic acid solution) can significantly affect the rate of absorption and the intensity and duration of the drug effects."

"THC is a hydrophobic oil and, as such, is insoluble in water. Therefore, in order be properly converted, it must be extracted into fats, oils, or alcohol, all of which can bind with the cannabinoids to properly deliver the compound to the body."

I kinda wondering about how safe ingesting bho really is ? I heard that even if bho is purged with a Vac chamber that there might be harmful elements left over from butane still in the oil. I dont know if this is true or not i would love to hear what everyones thoughts are on this and if any one know of any research/test results proving or disproving this ? I know there is a better way to make it ,talisuim extraction system device( spelled wrong i know ) where you dont vent butane into the air and all the butane is recovered , this might be the way its done to make sure its not harmful to ingest ? 1500.00 bucks or so for equipment though.

Thank you

faint

A whole bunch of food items are prepared with butane. BHO is not bad for you if done correctly.Take a look at some of the threads in the hash section.